What the new USB-C laws in the EU imply for the iPhone

This week, legislators in the European Union agreed on new measures to require manufacturers of everything from smartphones and headphones to digital cameras and tablets to utilize the same universal charging port: Type-C USB connector

The new standards are scheduled to go into effect in the autumn of 2024, after which these gadgets that charge using a wired connection will have to charge via a built-in USB-C connector.

What Impact Will This Have on Apple?

This law is anticipated to have the greatest effect on Apple’s iPhone. While the rest of the smartphone industry has increasingly converged on USB-C as a single, standardized wired charging port, Apple has stubbornly persevered with Lightning, the proprietary connector first introduced with the iPhone 5 in 2012. The EU’s regulations may finally compel it to go forward.

For the time being, the EU’s regulations are only provisional and must be accepted by both the European Council and the European Parliament before they become official. That is scheduled to happen after the conclusion of summer break on September 1st. It will go into effect 20 days later, and most firms will have 24 months to comply, thus the autumn 2024 compliance deadline.

Laptops are an exception since the high-wattage USB-C chargers required by these devices are less prevalent than phone chargers. Instead, they’ll have 40 months, which takes us to the beginning of 2026.

If Apple wants to keep the iPhone with a physical charging connector beyond the autumn of 2024, the EU wants USB-C to be the sole choice. It can no longer just provide an external dongle as it did a decade ago.

According to the most current public versions of the proposed regulation, the USB Type-C connection used for charging must be “accessible and operable at all times,” implying that a detachable dongle is unlikely to suffice. That’s because the EU’s laws are intended to decrease e-waste by establishing a uniform charging standard, which should allow more chargers to be reused rather than ending up in landfills. According to the EU, the measures might save 11,000 metric tons (more than 12,000 tons) of e-waste yearly and save consumers €250 million (about $268 million USD) on “unnecessary charger purchases.”

Each year, Apple releases its flagship iPhones in September, which means Apple’s 2024 iPhone lineup (presumably dubbed the iPhone 16) will be available just as the law takes effect. However, the guidelines state that “there should not be items on the market that are not compatible” with the directive, according to Desislava Dimitrova, a European Parliament spokesman. That implies Apple may prefer to make the modifications sooner rather than later, since it would have to alter or remove older devices from the market. Apple regularly sells outdated models at a cheaper price for many years.

Of course, the EU cannot compel Apple to make the modification globally. However, every iPhone sold in the European Union’s single market would be subject to these regulations. During the fiscal year 2021, Europe accounted for about a quarter of Apple’s net revenue, and the iPhone was the company’s best-selling product globally due to its sleek design and top-notch iOS transfer features. The market is just too profitable for Apple to exit due to such restrictions. Apple could produce USB-C iPhones and send them only to the EU, but given Apple’s focus on supply chain efficiency, which sees it sell a limited number of very identical products everywhere, that method is improbable.

There is at least one option for Apple to avoid including USB-C connections on their phones, and that is via wireless charging. Because present EU law primarily addresses wired charging, a phone that exclusively charges wirelessly might evade the EU’s charging harmonization standards entirely.

It’s a theoretical difference since portless phones don’t exist outside of a few concept phones and marketing stunts. However, it is noteworthy in light of speculations that Apple has pondered going down that path with the iPhone. Since Apple debuted the MagSafe wireless charging standard with the iPhone 12 range, these reports have been circulating. Those reports have since faded, and Apple’s choice to continue with cable charging might explain why the company seems disinterested in developing an ecosystem of MagSafe peripherals.

Apple has opposed efforts by the EU to standardize around USB-C. The corporation claimed in input to the European Commission last year that the legislation might stymie “the implementation of positive advances in charging standards, especially those relating to safety and energy efficiency.” The new laws may potentially increase e-waste in the near term “by triggering disposal of current cables and accessories,” according to the report. It makes a valid argument. With an expected 1 billion iPhones in use globally by early 2021, that’s a lot of charging gear that will become obsolete over time. And all of these consumers will need new USB-C accessories to replace them.

Summing Up

The EU’s new legislation is still a long way from becoming law. It must be finished technically and voted on by the European Parliament and the European Council. However, between it and the Digital Markets Act, which includes clauses requiring iMessage to interoperate with other smaller messaging services as well as requiring Apple to enable third-party app stores on iPhone, the organization is imposing significant changes on Apple. And if Apple wants to keep profiting from one of its most important markets, it will have no option but to play ball.